


The Way Things Are

by Yurilolita



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-15
Updated: 2016-07-14
Packaged: 2018-04-14 22:31:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4582590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yurilolita/pseuds/Yurilolita
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The whereabouts of clones #3 and #4 are unknown. This is the story about the forgotten clones- Dipper's 3 & 4, and their struggle to survive.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Day 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [charliesundies](https://archiveofourown.org/users/charliesundies/gifts).



> WHELP. I FINISHED THE FIRST CHAPTER. I hope you all enjoy this, it's been my baby for the last 2 days! Big shoutout to Charm0nder (charliesundies) for helping me with this, and I promise there will be more to come! (if it doesn't kill me)

**DAY 1:**

  
Dipper 3 waited anxiously for the signal. It was a perfect plan, he reassured himself, and it couldn't possibly fail since Dipper Classic had created it. If anything, he was also in on the plan, too, and was ready and willing to help.  
 Neon disco lights flared into his eyes, sending the room spinning with its colorful iridescence. From the speakerphones, positioned accordingly around the room, an electric upbeat tune played in accordance to the lights.  
 Dipper no.3 shuffled away from the crowd and into a dark corner of the room. Could Robbie see him? Not that it mattered, anyway. The jerk didn't seem to have a bit of intellect that Dipper obviously possessed. His eyes focused center to the opposite of the room, where Robbie lounged. It was against his nature by clone to steal anything, let alone break a law, as he knew the (reprocautions?) that his actions would give him. But if it meant that the original Dipper could have this one dance with Wendy, then he'd do anything for love! It didn't really matter that it was not "he" who got to sweep Wendy off her feet, but rather, the fact that somewhere, somehow, a potential cloned life form with his face had a chance with the coolest girl ever.  
Was he really going to do this to the guy? He didn't even know him per se...  
Robbie propped his body on the side of the wall, as Nate gushed over what sounded like the finale of the WWE smash-off? But the teen looked more involved with mindlessly picking at a pimple at the side of his face.  
"Yeugh."  
After looking him over, it became apparent why the other Dippers were not fans of this guy.  
"Psst!"  
Tyrone crept up from behind the hallway and gave him a thumbs up, motioning his arms for the next step. Identifiable by hat, the original Dipper cut through the clusters of people lively doing the cha-cha slide. After asserting himself to the front of the DJ booth, he purposefully leaned down and whispered something into Soos's ear, but Three didn't have time to look. He was busy fastening secure the slate grey helmet to his head (always safe than sorry, he thought absentmindedly) Show time.  
"H..hhey, wwa..wait for me!"  
Dipper Four rushed down the stairs, jumping down a few to save time. Oh, right. He had forgotten all about him. And the fuss he made to get him, too. He was a little bit paler than the rest of the bunch, even Paper jam looked like he had a healthy glow compared to Four. And his slurred stutter. Yeesh, was this the best they could do for him? Well, that did make sense, afterall, they were low on printer ink to begin with after all of the fliers were finished. "Here," he tossed the second helmet towards the other. "We have to hurry. Any minute Soos is going to-"  
"Doods, will the owner of a red and silver dirt bike report outside? It's being stolen like, right now."  
"GO, GO, GO!"  
Robbie, who had translated himself from loafing on the wall to lounging on the couch, suddenly became apparent of the situation.  
"Wait, WHAT?!"  
He sprung up from his position and threw himself at the front window. It was too late, though, as the two clones were already out the door.  
 "Hey come back here!" The two Dippers cheerfully laughed in unison at the absolute mess otherwise known as Robbie Valentino. But they were not out of the woods, yet. Robbie had started into a sprint trailing after the two thieves, and hot on their trail. "I'm not done with you! Wait until I get my hands on you chumps! Hey, you hear me? I'll- ah, shit!" He lost his footing as his sneakers came undone.This fall could have easily been avoided if it weren't for the week old skinny jeans he had been wearing, which stopped his knees from operating. Oafishly, Robbie to crash to the ground. Bloody and defeated, he spat out the gravel that had collected in his mouth and wiped away at the dirt. "This isn't over, you ..you dweebs! I'm calling the cops! You don't think I don't know where you two live?!? My family will sue!" And from his receding position, he chucked a rock towards their direction, only for it to land two feet away from him.  
"Hahaha, yess!" "Alright!"  
The clones paused for a fist bump as they sped off into the distance.  
\---------  
Thirty minutes had passed, and Three's legs were starting to tire. It wouldn't be long until he'd pass out from exhaustion, he rationalized, but then at that point Four could take the wheel. It was clear to the clone now that they had been out for longer than they bargained, for the sky that was once a dark pinkish hue was immediately swallowed by an obsidian nightfall. The summer wind pushed at his face, playing with the strands of hair that poked out of his skull helmet. He kept himself mobile solely by his drabbles with Four, but it seemed as though  the conversation was starting to wear thin.  
"Haha! Did you see the look on his face? I don't know if he was more shocked or angry at us! Man, I can't wait to tell the others about-"  
"P...petal...f...faster...r"  
"Huh, what did you say? It's kinda hard to hear what you're saying with this helmet on and being in the front seat and all-"  
"I.. I...I said, PETAL FASTER!"  
Three clamped down on the breaks.  
After regaining their balance on the stationary bicycle, he turned to face Four.  
Three couldn't place the expression on Four's face. There were tear marks stained across his face, but he had no evidence of sadness or pain. his eyes were wide and motionless, but his body was in a state of near trembling. He looked physically distraught. Almost as if he was-  
Fear. That was the word.  
"Hey, hey there. You're not thinking of going rouge are you? I know the plan was to bike as far until we didn't see Robbie, but I'm pretty sure they meant to say 'within the boundaries of 500 meters'. It's obvious that we should just return back to the shack, so....."  
"They...the..y are dd..dead."  
"What? What do you mean? Calm down, who's dead?"  
Dipper Four took a deep breath in and swallowed, trying the best to collect himself as best he could. He wiped the pearls of snot collecting on his face off and started over.  
"T..the plplan failed.. Di-Dipper Classic screwed up... There w..wasa fight- h..he..e killed them all."  
Tears started to bubble up in Four's eyes. Of course, he forgot about Number Four's clone vision- to see into the other Dipper's thoughts. Obviously Tyrone  possessed the ability, so it made sense that Dipper Four would have it, too.  
"Hey, commere buddy...It's ok. I didn't- I'll petal faster for you, alright? Just, stop crying." Three awkwardly side patted the other clone. Once Four had stopped sniffling, he repositioned himself again on the seat, and started to bike. Whether it was from sheer panic or from how fast Three was going, Dipper Four clung tightly to his back. The bike jerked some on the loose gravel as they reached a patchier road, more desolate from the main side of town. It wasn't like Dipper Three knew where he was going. For starters, he was born only hours ago, and was given no prior knowledge to where this place was based on original Dipper's memories. They were going somewhere entirely new.  
Shadows darted from the trees, as the boys parted ways with the last bits of artificial light they had.  
"Y..y..yanno, I can handle biking a..a..a little," Dipper Four offered. Number Three shook his head. "No, it's too dark out to see now, let alone bike. For now we should just travel by foot, at least until we find shelter for tonight." They disembarked their red and silver "stead" and cautiously treaded farther and farther into the night. CRACK."Did you hear that?" Dipper Three jumped, unnerved by the sound of unbroken silence. Even if he would never say it out loud, he was mildly intimidated by the dark. Just a smidge. "T...t..that's ju..just me, silly!" Four pointed to the stick he had stepped on, although it was useless as the dark made it impossible to see his arm, let alone the twig. He narrowed his eyes. "Are y..y..you af..ff..fraid of the ddark?" Three stopped dead in his tracks.  
"Nuh-uh, I'm just... Being precautious! Ha.ha..that's all..." Damn, he forgot about clone vision-again. He could read his thoughts?!!! Why didn't he possess it? And why wasn't Four fazed by lurking darkness that they seemed to be utterly trapped in? Three sighed. Maybe some clones just owned some abilities and others didn't, just like twins did... In a way. "Here, tttt..take this." From out of his vest's breast pocket, he took out a flashlight and illuminated the road. "I..it was cloned w..wi...with me, y..you p..probably have one, too." Three took hold of the flashlight, before checking his own pocket to see if held had one also. He did. "Only one of us can hold the flashlight though... Here, you think you can manage walking with the bike?" Four nodded, silently grabbing a hold of the bike, while Dipper Three held brought the light closer to his body. "There, over there," he motioned. Four understood exactly. The flashlight hovered over a wide, lopsided, Big Leaf Maple tree, with large branches  thicker than the clones' bodies. "Here, we can climb this and camp out for tonight. It's close enough to the road, but far enough from society. Plus, it looks sturdy enough to hold both of our weights... Which is... Approximately 112 pounds?" Dipper Four parked the dirt bike adjacent to the tree and joined him at the base. "Qqquick, gimme a boost!" As Dipper Three leaned down into position, Four skillfully used his body to latch on to a branch. Once secured on, he pulled his weight and flipped himself on to the top of the branch. "Ar..are you s..ssure we won't fall out of t..t.the tree while we...we're sssleeping?" Three pulled himself onto the trunk of the tree, gripping on to the grooves of the bark. "Of course not, I mean, it's definitely not the safest things we've done all night, but-" he paused to find a position in the tree, "Besides, if this thing was unstable it would have fallen ages ago." He unclipped his skull helmet and leaned against the tree's enormous trunk. "T..t..that d..didn't answer my question, Th..Three!"  
"Well- oh well. Sleep tight!"  
\---------  
The outdoor serenity had lulled Dipper Number Four into a blissful sleep. His small breaths synced with the light breeze that rustled the maple's leaves and the low hum of crickets in the background. His clone, however, was wide awake, and persistent about swatting mosquitoes from his back. "If the copy machine cloned that flashlight in Dipper Classic's pocket," he thought to himself, "then what else did it copy?" He grabbed his flashlight and flicked it on, and began emptying the increments from all the pockets he had.  
  
 In his short's left pocket, he found: nothing. His hand met a clump of collected lint, which he proceeded to fling from his hand in disgust.  
  
From his short's right pocket, there was: several chewed up pictures of Dipper Classic and his sister, Mabel, posing in front of a taxidermied animal (what kind he would never be sure) and on the back of one, was hand written "Pines Twins 4 Life!!!!" Along with a unicorn sticker. Along with that, he discovered $20 (emergency money), a handheld pocketknife, and several candy wrappers stuck to the inner lining of the shorts.  
  
From his right vest pocket, he noted: said flashlight, a camera, a well chewed on pen, and several party fliers.  
  
From his left vest pocket, however, he couldn't seem to easily pull the object out. As his hands glided along its long surface, he remembered the texture. It was familiar in a sense, but not to him. And then it hit him- it was a texture any Dipper of any universe, realm, dimension, or clone would recognize anywhere: The journal.  
  
"Dipper Pines, prepare to be sorry that you even existed."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. I really liked the "endless pockets" trope made with Dipper Pines, so I used it. ha.  
> 2\. I tried my best to make this geologically, and canonically accurate to both the show and the setting, along with Dipper's gestures and phrases.  
> 3\. These boys are gonna be dirtier than the original Dip Dop, as they can't bathe. Enjoy your smelly children.  
> 4\. SO MUCH LOGIC AND THOUGHT PROCESS WENT INTO MAKING THE CLONES OW MY HEAD IS KILLING ME  
> 5\. ow.  
> 6\. creating entire dialogs (and story) with the same person talking to himself is hard.  
> 7\. Updates soon. Expect anything, guys.


	2. Day 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> small tinies fend for themselves

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings mentioned: Gore (kinda), death (sorta), older sis bulling bro for being such a dork  
> Don't worry its basically fluff, though, I just wanna make sure I cover all my bases just in case anyone gets offended.

**DAY 2** :

 

* * *

 

 **I** f there was a more picturesque morning to wake up to, it would have been this day, Three would have assumed. He would note the songbirds tittering in the branches above where he had rested peacefully. There was a sliver of golden sunshine that pooled onto his face, and it emitted a warm glow feel. All of the trees dipped slightly from the ebb and flow of the breeze, as if giving a polite bow to the tree in which the boys had slumbered, as if remorseful that they could not provide their services. Dipper Three would have been able to notice all of this, if it were not have been for the way in which he woke up.

"Three!"

"Mghhrh...Five more minutes... I can't even..ugrhphrm.." He shifted to his side, to avoid being pestered. His clone half whisper shouted again,"Th..T..T...THREE!" Four continued to jostle him more adamantly now.

"Th..th..three.. This..is... Important! Y..y..you gotta wake u..u..up man!"

Now practically being shaken til' the point of falling off the tree limb he sat in he opened his eyes half-way, idly staring at Dipper Four's blurred outline until his eyes regained focus.

"Yeah, what's up, what's your problem?" Dipper Four grasped his face and moved it in the direction he was looking at and pointed.

 

"T..TTTTHAT'S OUR P...P..PROBLEM!!!" He fumed.

Number Three stared intensely at the blob of an object his eyes projected. It looked like a typical house cat. It bobbed its head around, clawing at the dirt and sediment that had collected. "Sure," he thought, "it looked a little bit big from his view but that was the beauty and wonder of perspective distortion..." His eyes widened. That was no perspective.

"IS THAT A COUGAR?!???"

His clone immediately slapped a hand across his mouth to keep him from screaming. It was a miracle that he was able to keep in his own wimpy squealing himself. But it was too late. The wild cat paused its pawing and stared up into their tree. Its eyes locked on its new interest. And with little to no warning, it launched itself at the tree, swiping its paws at the kids. "THAT'S A COUGAR ALRIGHT!" They both dodged the blow, jumping from different directions. The cat maneuvered from the tree towards the ground. There was no holding it back now, the boys were definitely screaming. Dipper four got up from his fallen position and headed for the bike. "SERIOUSLY!!? WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!? THIS IS NO TIME TO THINK ABOUT THE BIKE! WE'VE GOTTA GO! COMON'!" But before Four could respond, the mountain lion began chasing his latter eyes hungry and untame. Dipper Three sprinted with all of his might to pace himself with the cat, swerving in different directions to throw it off track. But because of the exertion he had given off biking that night, his legs were starting to buckle. Afterall, they were not the best for outrunning a sizable creature like a cougar. And in this frenzied state of panic and desperation, his mind phased back to a set of memories not quite his own.

 

* * *

 

 

" **M** abel?"

 

"Yes, Dippity doo da?"

 

"Did you remember to pack toothpaste for both of us? My luggage is full and I hate your bubble gum flavor toothpaste."

 

"No worries, bro bro, I got it riiight here, with the brushes! And I thought you liked that brand, too! How can you not, I mean, it's got these cute lil' characters on the label..."

 

"Good, I guess I can mark that off the list... Hey, check to see if we packed some sunscreen."

 

"Dipper! It's not like we're going to magically run outta a whole bottle of sunscreen through the summer! Besides, I bought some at the drugstore myself- in case some hot boy comes around and needs some latherin'!"

 

"Mabel, focus! This is really important. You never want to under pack on trips, especially ones to- shivers- Oregon. You gotta be prepared."

 

"Alright, alright, I get it, bring only everything you need and the kitchen sink to your Great Uncle's house. But let me remind you, that you packed 24 cheez doodle packages and you're whole collection of superhero comics!!"

 

"They're not comics, they're graphic novels!!! It's for the summer reading we have to do. Plus, I happen to like cheez doodles.."

 

"Ok, ya big dork, what else is inside your bag o' wonders (besides not an extra change of clothes)?" "HEY! Well, uh, now that you've asked, I do have this book on survival in the wild that I'm bringing."

 

"Survival in the Wild? When were you going to use this in Pieudmount? Surviving a chihuahua attack?"

 

"Well, actually I bought it for the trip. Look, it has bird calls, what to do if you're ever stuck in a mudslide, even how to survive a cougar attack!"

 

"Ooooh I like that one. You think we might be able to see a bird like this on vacation?" "Maybe. Oh look! There's that cougar I was talking about!" "Wild...Bobcat... It's so HUGE! Do you think that since it's so big and fluffy it deserves TWICE the amounts of snuggling that normal cats do?"

 

"Mabel, you can't snuggle a bobcat, it would rip your face off. See here.. 'Male Wild Bobcats are extremely territorial, if one was to tread directly where their food supply was, they take the risk of becoming attacked...' If I saw a bobcat in the wild, I'd probably make a run for it."

 

"Hehe. Dipper Pines, outrunning a bobcat. Now THAT would be a sight to see!"

 

* * *

 

 

Dipper Three shielded his face as an oncoming branch collided with his head. Faster, Faster. He could hear the feline catching up to him, but he dare not look back. He wanted to run close to the road so he wouldn't get lost, but it seemed that it only made it easier for the predator to hunt him down. DING!DING! Just as things were looking bleak, Dipper Four came speeding towards him on their stolen bicycle. "G..gg..get on!" Without hesitation, Three ran for the bike, and hopped on the back seat. The bike wobbled in retaliation to their weight and movement, but it corrected itself instantly. However, this did not stop the fact that a wild animal was charging at them at full speed. Four kept petaling, though, as beads of sweat dripped down his beet red face.

"He's gaining on us, four!"

It was close now. If they thought they could out run a cougar, then they certainly couldn't out bike a cougar. Its face was inches away from Three's theigh. Its hair was golden and mangy, and its claws appeared to be those of campfire stories. The child grimaced, as he saw his one-day life flash before his eyes. Four gasped. "TRUCK!" The boys swerved off the road on their stolen bike, colliding with a tree, as the bobcat met a more fatal, gruesome fate.

 

**THUD.**

 

Surprisingly, after the sound of ligaments and bone being ground against the pavement and dirt, the truck kept going, and was lost in the background in a frame of trees. Thee dusted himself off, moaning at the scratches on his leg. "Hey Four, you ok?" He rubbed the back of his head for some time. "Y..yeah," he managed, "S..s..see, I'm w...w..wearing a h..helmet!"

Three couldn't help but smile. Although he stole his favorite (for him now, apparently) skull helmet, he had to admit that Four didn't look so bad with it on. "T..t..thanks," he murmured, turning back to the bike to check on the damages. "Oh," Three looked down, feeling pretty dumb. "Clone vision."

He stepped to the center of the road and surveyed the mangled creature, lifeless upon the ground. Its eyes still held their green tinted color, however, it was not as vibrant as it was when it was alive. A pool of blood collected in the street and expanded, creating a circle around the body. Number Three could clearly tell where its spinal cord was broken, and was just a tiny bit thankful that he didn't have to "deal" with it by himself. He nudged the beast with his shoe.

"Jeez, I didn't want it to die, I just wanted it to stop chasing us." Dipper Four nodded solemnly. "L..l..let's keep going. W..we'll stop back..at the t..tree and get..mmmy helmet l..l..later."

 

* * *

 

 

 **T** he clones kept on going back down the road, with Four pulling their weight, and Three sitting in back. He was still, and hadn't spoke since they had started biking. It was particularly half true that Four could read his thoughts, but he felt it was best not to pry at him right now. They reached a bend in the road where their path met a frequented route. Cars fled past the clones in bright streaks of color, but Dipper 4 made sure to stay on the side of the road so there would be no trouble. Another car came, yet unlike the rest it flared red and blue neon lights and slowed down until they were just behind them. He stopped.

The doors of the police car opened with a click, and a short, wide man with sunglasses the size of his face stepped out of the car. His shiny golden label glimmered against the summer sky faintly reading in bold letters: Sherif Blubs. Dipper Three looked up from his position, and motioned to Four. "I'll handle this." As the Sherif approached their 'vehicle' so to speak, he cleared his throat and deepened his voice, as any rational, level headed adult would do. "Is there a problem officer?" He maintained his cool, although he panicked within hoping that the sherif wouldn't recognize the cloned boys, or say anything about the bike.

 

 

Sherif Blubs took off his hat and scratched his head. "Indeed, we do. Uh, we got a call reporting of a stolen dirt bike matching this description. Now, you two wouldn't happen to know anything about this, would you?"

 

He swallowed deeply. "Actually, sir," he stated, "we do." Dipper Four's eyes enlarged, as he stared back at his clone. "You- you see, sir, we we're the ones who sent in the call. It turns out it was just two teenagers that we knew playing a prank on us. They apologized for their actions, and said it was cruel on their behalf. But thank you for investigating further into this crime. It really shows that you keep Gravity Falls safe and secure." Serif Blubs chuckled. "Heh. Well I guess if that's true then we'll just be on our way then." The window to the cop car scrolled down, and Deputy Durland was able to poke his pinhead slightly out. "Ey Blubs! Did we catch those thieven' bandits?" "Nope, I'm afraid not. False alarm, buddy," Blubs hollered back. Durland shook his fist. "Aw, man! I thought we was gonna have a good day at work!" Blubs opened the side to the car door. "Working alongside you, everyday becomes a good at work." He looked up at the clones. "I'll be seein' you kids. And don't get into too much trouble." With that, he rolled up the window and drove off.

 

"How did he not recognize us?"

 

"Tt..terrible vision..."

 

* * *

 

 

 

 **T** hey followed the up the road further until they approached a small off the path gift shop and gas station nestled in the trees. Four stopped instinctively on the side and parked the bike. "Alright," Three motioned, "I have $20 dollars in my pocket so collectively that means we have $40 in total for supplies and food...Which means we'll have to be thrifty. You think you can manage watching the bike for me until I get back?" Dipper Four paused for a moment, and then nodded. Always the silent one. "You.. You want anything from the store, Buddy?" He shuffled his feet in thought. "W...w..wwhat you're having. Also, t..t..those s..s.sour gummy worms? Yeah, t..tthose, please."

 

 

Three nodded, and walked into the shop. What greeted him first was a small bell connected to the door, and the stench of second hand smoke. The radio blazed on, but it was so mumbled and garbled it was practically impossible to know which station he was listening to. A little old lady stationed the back counter, giving the boy a warm smile. "Hello, little one. Feel free to have a look-see around." Three maneuvered through the tall isles, which surprised him the most, and made the comparison to the Tardis in his head. He motioned his index finger along the shelf of snacks and assorted edible bagged goods until he found the beef jerky. After grabbing two, he moved on to the candy section. Finding the right gummy worms for Number Four to enjoy was easier than he expected. Once he grabbed a package including some granola, sunflower seeds, and two extra large rain ponchos, he rung up his purchase with the old woman. "Ah!" She smiled,"Aren't you Standford's child? He is such a sweet man." Three said nothing as she registered the next item. "Isn't your sister also your twin? You have the most adorable sister! Maple, is it not? Such a sweetheart! It really warms my heart to see how close you too are." The cash register chimed again. "Oh, just between you and me, you can pick out anything your little heart desires. The last item is on me." He took a moment to think, and picked a large umbrella out of the stand in the front of the store. "Wise choice, young man. Make sure you'll say hi to her for me." She winked. Three took the plastic bag from her. "Sure, ok. Take care." He exited quickly to find Number Four squatting lazily on the sidewalk. "R..r..rrready?" He nodded. "Don't worry about it, I'll petal. Just hold on to this." He handed off the bag to his clone and they rode back to their tree.

 

* * *

 

 

 **I** t was not long before they ran into the wildcat's corpse, and after that, the tree. "Ok, Four. I think you know the drill." He used his clone's arms for support and propped himself up in the tree. "Y..y..yanno w..what this t..tree needs?"

" _ **A tree fort?"**_ They both said in sync, and took a minute to laugh at themselves.

"Ok, ok. I'll gather sticks, and you'll put them in place. Let's make this the coolest tree house/fort/thing the world has ever seen!" They both got to work on the framing first, starting with a sturdy architectural design that would hold based on the trees shape. Three pulled switches off of the limbs of low hanging trees, only picking out the strongest of the bunch. Once he got a bundle, Dipper Three passed them up to his companion, who wedged them into place. However, one obviously peeved birch retaliated and whacked him straight in the face in anger. Four laughed at him in the distance while he tried to conceal his embarrassment.

 

 

"YOU DIDN'T SEE THAT!"

Which caused Four to go into a giggle fit.

 

"UGH, COMMON' MAN, NOT COOL!" His face burned.

The sunlight dimmed, edging into a copper toned sunset. Once it was deemed amongst the clones that they had added enough sticks, Four found a trash bag on the side of the road and covered their hut with it. "For protection," he said surely, "F..f..from t..the rain." Three ventured to sever the cougar's head off and place on the top of the house to "ward off evil," but Four dismissed the idea saying that it would "rot and stink up the place." As the sun skimmed around the edge of the horizon, the boys had finally accomplished their vision of an "ideal tree fort". It was perfect, (or, at least to them) and they both glistened with pride as they entered their newly built shanty home. "It's a little cramped, so we might have to sleep together. I hope you like having no leg room." Four pushed as far as he could to offer some space for him, but he dismissed it with the wave of his hand, and passed the gummy worms over. "I hope we don't have to deal with cougars tomorrow. One big cat is enough for me, thank you-" Four mumbled something in agreement as his continued to stuff sour worms into his mouth. "Tomorrow hopefully we can work on something with the journal. It'll definitely help us survive." Three ripped open his jerky and indulged in several pieces. "Whelp, I guess that concludes the night. You thinking about sleeping?" Dipper Four wiped his mouth of any remnants of sour sugar. "N..n..nope, n..none..tthat I cc..c..can think of." Three shuffled awkwardly against him to get comfortable.

 

"Ok, then. Goodnight, me."

 

"G...g..good n..night you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1.) I had a lot of fun creating the dialog for this one  
> 2.) WILD CATS! SING ALONG!!! YEAH U REALLY GOT IT GOIN' ON!!  
> 3) Did you know that there are 40 different names for cougar in the English language? No, you didn't.  
> 4.) Someone I know works for the Natural History Museum genetically analyzing cougar poop. This chapter's for you, Buddy.  
> 5.) the old lady in this chapter was based of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVJUEg0IDis&t=0m58s (hopefully that link works)  
> 6.) Gey cops are cool with me, so long as they don't shoot anyone for discrimination  
> 7.) Those trees are VERY remorseful AND angry. you're welcome.  
> 8.) This story kinda sounds like "The Epiplectic Bicycle" by Edward Gorey  
> 9.) Will post very soon, I swear.


	3. Day 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smelly kids and kitty cats are fun as entertaining, but here's something that should really scare you.   
> Watch out naughty children, I hope you've been good for this next chapter.
> 
> WARNING: GRAPHIC TREE ABUSE (actual trees) you've been warned.  
> EDIT: I added a pocket knife to the first chapter to give it flow

The way things are chapter 3

Day 3:

"Fight me."  
Dipper 3 stared dead into the dark orb spiraling around his creator. And though he was screaming to the top of his lungs, his woe fell upon deaf ears. The silhouette of the boy did not stir. He kept his back towards Three, not even pausing to look over his shoulder.  
"I said, FIGHT ME YOU COWARD!"  
The menacing tornado-like body kept whipping up dark clods of the ground they stood upon, but the boy in the eye of the storm said nothing.  
"HEY, I...I'M TALKING TO YOU!"  
Three reached down and grabbed a rock at his feet, and threw it directly at his head. Of course, it did not reach it, and became swept up by the eager arms of the storm. Tears streamed about Dipper Number Three's face. His hair slapped him and sand stung his eyes, if they weren't stung already.  
"GHNNRAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!"  
He screamed out towards the darkened sky, letting his voice travel from the echoing storm. Three grabbed another rock and another, throwing as hard as he could without success. The clone's shoulders wilted in defeat.  
"I'm not good enough," he confessed to the hellish vortex of rotating wind, "but I sure am better than the likes of YOU!"  
Maniacally, he threw himself at the wirlwind at full force in a wild sprint.  
The boy inside the storm turned on him. It's body neck down was normal, but it's face? It's face looked other-worldly- no, a monstrous abomination, with two rows teeth running down where a face was meant to be, and four insect jaws in replace of cheek bones and a mouth. The creature screeched at the boy in response, opening its many mouths. He sent out a war bloodcurdling holler as he charged directly at the indescribable montstrosity, busting through the many, impenetrable layers of wind.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"  
"Three, T..three, t...t...take it easy! T..T..THREE! w...W..WAKE UP!"

Startled, the boy came to, stopping his thrashing movements. He wearily rubbed the sleep and tears from his clouded eyes, to stare back at the familiar face in front of him. Four gave him a small wave, as other hand was busy on grasping Three's arm as tight as possible. He still was wearing his scull helmet, and Three wondered if he was sleeping in it all night. "So, it.. That was all just a dream?"  
Four nodded, (as he was good at doing) and recapped the scenario. "I...I w..woke up b...before y...you," he explained, "A...a...and w..went to c..c..collect berries. When I...w..when I returned, y..y..you were h..halfway out of the tree!"  
Three knitted his eyebrows together in amazement. Four must of been really tough to have kept him up there as long as he did. It was practically a miracle he didn't fall.  
"Woah, seriously?!"  
"Y..yeah.. I...g..g..guess I would...I would've h..h..had the s..s..same dream too if I...I ...were as..s..sleep!" He chuckled lightly to himself. "I've gotta -I've gotta....s..st..start w...waking you up m...m..more often, pal!"  
Three rolled his eyes and slightly punched his shoulder playfully. As soon as their laughter died, Four stared deep into his eyes sincerely. "In..in all s..s..serious..ness, t..t..though, it's..it's ok t..to talk about it.. I s..saw w..what happened." Three's smile slowly became a grimace. He could even keep his nightmares private..  
He turned, and lowered himself down from the safety of his tree loft. "W..w..wait, where- where are you g..g...going? THREE!"  
The clone balled his fists and discreetly squeezed the tears out of his eyes. "D-don't call me that...."  
"Three?"  
"I SAID, DON'T CALL ME THAT!" He slammed one of his fists on the base of the tree, as tears replaced the dried up tear lines on his face. There was no hiding it, now. His body convulsed and writhed as his hidden pain bubbled over, making him choke on his sobs.  
"I'm tired... Tired of being someone else.. Someone I'm not. I am my own person, no matter how I came about to be, and want others to know that!" He slammed his fist back at the tree. Four looked helplessly down from above and raised a hand to cover his small gasp. Carefully, he climbed down, and stood beside the other. "W...w..well t..t..then, w..w..what would you like me to call you th..th..then?"  
He tilted his head, and thought carefully. "Experato!" He exclaimed with a sad smile.  
"No."  
"Why not? We love the wizarding world and ghastly adventures of the amazing warlock, Lord Experato!"  
"H...h..he t..turns into stone int..t..the end..."  
"Oh. Fair point."  
The cloned copies thought harder.  
"What about James Montana?"  
"J..J..James Montana?"  
"Yeah, you know the one from the movies... He was always treasure hunting, spelunking, unlocking secrets of the unknown.. And he always got the girl!"  
His companion laughed a little at the thought of him being James Montana. "S...s..sure! It fits you!"  
The boy scrunched back down to a sitting position at the trunk of the tree."Yeah...but what would your name be, then?"  
He frowned. "H..h..how about t..t..Tyrone?"  
The clone paused, and suddenly went numb inside. "Tyrone's dead. He's never coming back. He died with the rest of them. We can't use Ty." Noticing the nervous expression on his yet unnamed clone, he forced a smile. "Hey, now. I know what we can do. For now on I'll be James Montana, and you can be Montana James!" Four nodded in agreement, and started to grin as well. "M..my n...n..name is Montana James, then!"  
"It has been decided then!" The newly named James declared. "We have to make it official."  
"C..c..certainly."  
"Shake on it?"  
"Shake on it!"  
They clasped each other's hands to create an awkward form of a handshake. After shaking, James departed and started to slink back up the tree. He returned, with his copy of Dipper Classic's blue poofy vest-jacket. He rummaged through one of the side pockets until successfully pulling out a pocket knife. "The first thing I am going to as James Montana," he exclaimed, "Is give myself a HAIRCUT!!"  
Four, otherwise now known as Montana, giggled under his breath from the absurdity of his clone. "Be careful... S..safety first!" Immediately, James pulled a clump of hair back and edged the blade across. The first thing that would have to go was his bangs, he decided. Although he hesitated, after knowing that it would reveal his birthmark, he continued cutting. He wasn't "Dipper" any more. Not a mindless minion without a voice. Soon, he was hacking about at random sections, without a rhyme or reason. Bits and pieces of hair fluttered to the ground. Once content, he dusted the hair off of his shoulders and shirt.  
"How does it look?"  
"Awful."  
He stretched. "Good. You want one?"  
Montana cringed and waved it off. "N..n..nah, I.. I think I'll s..sstick with th..th..this helmet."  
He gave the scull emblem at the top of his head a sure tap.  
"Hey, you said you gathered some berries. Mind if I had some?"  
Montana shrugged and walked behind the tree. He returned, with the same shopping bag they had used to buy supplies with. But instead of it's previous contents, James was surprised to find several mangled looking berries (of no species he was familiar with); enough to fill a third of the bag. From what the juice marks on the side of the bag revealed, these berries carried a lustrous dark purple, almost dark enough to be considered black. Hastily, he grabbed a fistful and squeezed his palm shut until his hand started oozing the dark pigment. Montana squirmed with disgust, pulling back the bag. "H..h..hey! I..I p..p..p...picked those!!"  
Ignoring Montana's pleas, he pulled off his shirt and laid it flat on the ground. Montana grumbled some more, checking on his bag that none of his other berries were wrecked in the processes, but he eased over James's shoulder in curiosity.  
With an index finger (and as much precision a 12 year old's clone can have), James took his juice covered hand and began tracing out the number "3". When he was content with the outline draft, he dabbed more juice on to his finger and colored it in. It wasn't perfect, per se, as some of the pigment bled through the back of the shirt, leaving awful purple blotches.  
James stood up, triumphantly displaying his masterpiece. "There! It's finished! My mark on society!"  
His counter part chucked under his breath. "A..at l..l..least it..it looks b..b..better than your haircut."  
James stared back down at his hand. "It's interesting that the juice doesn't effect us. Maybe it just doesn't have enough water content to do any damage. What did you say these were again?"  
Montana shrugged, mumbling what sounded like an "I don't know."  
"T..t..they looked k...k..kinda like blue....blueberries, s..s..so I just assumed they were w..w..wild." He looked sheepishly at the ground.  
"T..there were more...b..but..."  
James frowned and turned to his copy of the journal. "Perhaps the Journal will shed some light on this matter....Aha!"  
"W..w..what'sit say?"  
"Ahem. 'Mysterious Berries page 1 of 4: During my travels I have come across some peculiar looking berries, that I have seen nowhere else. I puzzled some of ethnobotanists friends who are familiar with plants that are common in the north west region, however, they were just as perplexed as I was.' Let's see here, there's an 'Adlin berry,' supposingly it can turn parts of your body orange for a bit of time?? No, that's not it, it's described as yellow. " he flipped the page. "Uhm, how about the 'Hanging Loom Berry'? It says that it's found on large trees similar to spruces, and 'tastes great used as a  
preserve, however it can produce memory loss up to five days.' It's also purple in color. Was it that one?"  
Montana decisively shook his head. "N..no, it g..grew on a b..bush."  
"Oh! Then it has gotta be the berries from the 'Morning Walker' plant. 'No side effects whatsoever...."  
Montana sighed with relief.  
"....that are out of the ordinary? Causes gastric problems and vomiting if ingested...' Seriously?!"  
And with that, trigged a moan of pain from Montana.

The rest of the day was spent primarily on tending to Montana's weak stomach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY I FINNISHED ANOTHER CHAPTER.  
> I wish I was as fast as some folks, but I'll try my darnedest to keep updating fairly smoothly!  
> 1.) Fun fact: The storybook character "James Montana" totally is a rip off from Indiana Jones. I thought it'd be fun to use a modified name like the canonical show does.  
> 2.) Not-so-Fun-fact: My name was supposed to be "James-Montana" for a long while until it was changed to properly fit me when I was born. We never speak of it.  
> 3.) Lord Exerato may or may not be ripoff Hairy Potter  
> 4.) #3 is so edgy he could be the next Banksy if he wanted to  
> 5.) What they are referencing from inside the journal is called a "dichotomous key". Kids, when you all grow up to be super scientists like me, you'll have to use this shit for the rest of your life. Be prepared, and learn it now from the gay fanfics.  
> 6.) James Montana=Dipper no.3 Montana James= Dipper no.4  
> 7.) I excluded the part where Montana violently throws up his guts and cries a lot 'cause no one needs that.  
> 8.) These boys are gettin' smellier each day


	4. Day 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm not gonna give anything away, but it's getting a little bit more dicey for the smols, so trigger warnings of injury?  
> anyway, that said, I'm glad to be back!  
> and enjoy!

**DAY 4:**

**What if that was it?**

The clone awoke from his slumber. The surroundings came back to him, the warm sunshine pouring through the tree, drifting into their makeshift house. Drearily, James tilted his head over to where Montana laid. The boy did not stir, and looked comfortable with his arm tucked above his head, and his legs strewn about. His lips parted in almost a slight smile. He looked... Almost happy, James considered. This was quite a surprise to him as he had never seen the other sleep before (well not as intently). It was the first time that James had ever woken up before him. What was he dreaming about so peacefully? There was a sense of warmth, a sense of belonging there in that tree with him, and yet- Montana lifted his eyes with a small grumble and squinted adjusting to the morning light. He looked back at James (who had now brusquely turned his head) and exchanged a glance.

"...sss'Sup?"

"Morning. How did you sleep?"

Montana lazily yawned in response. "I dunno. ggGood, I gggguess?" He slowly regained himself, combing his hair with his slender fingers. "And your stomach is-?" "Fine." James gave a small smile. "Good. We got a lot planned today, starting with THIS!" In tandem, he retrieved his copy of the journal and smacked it on his thighs. "ttthe journal? Wwhat do you need tt.."that for?" Montana stammered. In response, Jame's grin expanded across his face. "What WE are gonna do," the clone replied, opening to the first page he flipped to, "Is taking our lives back. This book's gonna help us. According to Dipper Classic, the journal reads just like stereo instructions! We'll be fine as long as we analyze each page step by step. The best way to go about this is chronologically, (ooof course)." Montana nodded, still apprehensive of the plan.

"Sssso, a s..ssquash with a human ffface and emotions is gonna help us ttttake our lives back?"

James stared down dumbly at the page in which he pointed at. "Never mind, that. What's important is the significance of it. I was skimming through the pages, and I found a lot of information that can help us survive. Do you know what that means? This is could be our big break!" Montana hummed, and leafed through several pages. He only pushed back the pages as soon as he was sure that he had read the entire passage. "Aha! Here it is.. The 'Morningside Mantis'. Says here that the Morningside Mantis is ' _by far one of the most unusual specimens I have ever encountered in Gravity Falls. My assistant and I stumbled upon one while entering a cavern nearby the deeper parts of the Eastern Woods, and has been closed off from the public by the government for ecological rehabilitation for years. I have discovered that this creature also possesses some magical abilities/energies. When grabbed at the roots, the Morningside Mantis's hair sustains the power by means to grant wishes. Although my partner and I have not investigated this power entirely, the power is undeniably existent and_ -' MONTANA, DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS?!?"

James snapped the book shut, almost clipping the others nose. Montana, enamored by the pretty little captions and illustrated depictions in which the journal had to offer, jumped at the sound and his clone jolting to an upright position. "That means we could make an end to Dipper Pines! I mean, we could just zap! him outta existence, right?" Montana shrugged and stared intensely into the grooves of the bark. "James, I..I'mmn n.not too ssssure a-bout this. T..the aaa..aauthor nne..ne..never wrote of an..any any sss..sside effects. Be..besides, who'sssever h..heard of a m..mmantis with fur?" James Montana furrowed his brow. He hadn't considered the repercussions nor weighed any of the risks involved. Who knew if this thing was poisonous? "It's just a bug! But, if you feel it's best, we can take the helmet, if you want to. That way we have something we can capture it with. You'll have to, uh, hold the helmet with your arm or something, so the mantis won't escape- but I can do it if you don't want to! I donno, but it's worth a try! It's up to you!"

Montana stopped to blink, trying not to appear wide eyed as possible. Not wanting to appear ungrateful of this small gesture, as he turned to climb down the tree he mustered a small "Ttthanks," before dropping to the floor below.

The third clone followed quickly in his footsteps until they met up at the bike. Montana paused to retrieve (now his) skull helmet, and pulled up a fistful of uneaten berries to toss some in his mouth. Remembering the sickness the latter endured the past day (and what he had to endure from it), James cringed. "You still have some in your helmet?! Seriously dude?" Proceeding to smack the rest of the berries out of the clone's hand.

He regained focus once more. "There's a map of the town drawn in here. According to the Journal, we're located somewhere in the Eastern Woods, since we came that way, and- urm, the highway connects over there." James wiggled his finger, motioning towards the areas in the Journal. Although the Author was brilliant at many things, mapmaking was obviously not one of his strong suits. The crude sketches of sections of blob-like forests and squares as buildings were not the most accurate depictions of Gravity Falls, Dipper 3 agreed. At this moment of time, he looked back and regretted not grabbing a tourist map from the kiosk at the store. If they ever went back there, he'd be sure to take a couple. "That means we must be close. The Journal said that it was a closed off area, and I saw some signs and fences a little ways. We should bike near here." Montana nodded.

 

* * *

 

It was about a quarter mile of petaling for both clones to reach the destination Dipper 3 had saw. Montana had noticed how worn out James was after committing to petal for the both of them, so it seemed only fair that he help out, too. As the two biked on, the once stubborn and rough road progressed into more of a packed tar and riding became such smoother. The trees seemed to change, as well. Redwoods arched up to the sky, covering the road in a patchwork of shade. Pine and firs filled in the gaps of sunlight, and framed the road before them. The silence of the wood left James once again, alone with his thoughts. The clone resented this though, full aware of his companion's abilities, and took to whistling instead. Upon arrival, James hid the bike under a bit of fallen branches and dead leaves.

The sign that confronted them next was big and orange and attached to a tree. Along with its bold, and short "WARNING", it listed various common recreations such as "swimming", "hunting" and "fishing", all prohibited under federal state law. And to summarize, if there were those who still had not the mental capacity to understand, below, in underlined dark letters read: KEEP OUT.

"Yyyy..yanno, we we could gggo t..to prison..." Montana ventured, "Fffor trespassing."

However, staying out was perhaps the last thing the boys would do. With the shared commonality of fear of jumping from high places, the clones helped each other climb the barbed fence so they could be over and done with the experience altogether. The rest of the journey would now have to be on foot. The weeds and bushes grew more abundantly here, scratching up their legs. Not even their photo copied socks could protect them from the thorns and bristles they passed by. James pushed his hands deeper and deeper into his pockets to keep his mind off of the perpetual threat of death, while Montana mindlessly twisted his book to make some sense of the path they were on. "Heh heh.. You.. You're not scared, are you?" Montana shrugged, not taking his gaze off of the Journal's pages. Three stopped abruptly in his tracks, causing his partner to stumble also. "Look. Look over there. Is that a cave up ahead?" Montana dusted himself off of the bristles he had encountered. "Y..y.yes, it l..l..looks like we're deep enough in in the woods. J..J..James, t.t..this could be ththe place!"

The mouth of the cavern was dark, and slightly moist, to the boys despair. Because of the entrance's natural creation of erosion of weathered rock, it was a small opening, and could be compared better as a wide crack than a grand cave arch. The clones had to angle their bodies to the side to slide into the cave. The crevasse of the entrance began to widen as the two went deeper and deeper in. With every step, the walls swallowed any glimpse of light until the egress vanished from sight. Montana fidgeted and flipped on his flashlight, to eliminate the possibility of tripping over a stalagmite. The tunnel lit up with its soft glow.

"You see anything?" Four passed his light over what appeared to be a crude spray paint of a muffin. "Nnnope. Ll..let's keep lllooking though. Acc..cording to the j.journal, it..it's g..ggotta be ssome-somewhere here in th..th.this area." James flicked on his light. "It could be anywhere though. Under rocks.. Inside holes.. Hey, what color was the mantis again?" His voice vibrated off of the walls, darting into the unknown. Montana shivered. It wasn't just that the temperature had changed, the atmosphere itself had shifted. Perhaps it was the claustrophobia setting in- that obscene paranoia that somewhere- someone was watching them.

"Look!" James pointed towards the scuttling of a creature hiding behind a stalagmite up ahead of them. "This could be it. Follow that bug!" The clone dashed ahead hot in pursuit. Begrudgingly, Montana followed. His knees quivered as he shifted along towards his companion. "No, wait! There it goes again! Come on!" Montana watched with feeble effort as James went even deeper into the cave.

"Almost there.. Aha! Hey! I think I caught it! Ouch! Montana! I've got it! I've ... a beetle? Darnit, this isn't right..Well, we'll just have to keep on looking, right- Montana?...Montana?"

It was not the stag beetle that Montana's eyes were locked on. His clenched fist trembled as his flashlight lit the cave. His mouth gaped slightly in true fear. It was not the beetle that Montana was focused on. It was what was behind it. The Morningside Mantis. What was heard next was the most ear-peeling shriek, piercing through the boys' very composure. James abruptly swerved, dropping the bug in the excitement. Before being promptly grabbed by the Fourth clone, and before screaming for his life, while escaping what seemed him to be a slow, agonizing death, what James Montana glimpsed in three seconds was unimaginable.

A mantis, towering what seemed to be over 7 feet tall stood just inches away from him. Its body was a light green, but clearly the coat of dark red splatters covered any hint of green on its thorax. But what was truly unique about it, besides its humongous size and length, was the blonde hair growing out of its head and front legs. If he had time to process what was happening, James would have compared it to a bad synthetic wig Dipper Classic saw in Piedmont. But he had no time to process that now. He heard the mantis gaining speed, now dangerously close behind them. The sound of six legs scraping against stone wall.

"W..WWWATCH OUT!" A stalactite crashed in the boys' direction. The passageway they came in was becoming narrower and narrower; making the task of maneuvering between stalagmites a challenge. James turned behind him. He didn't feel the other's hand anymore. "MONTANA!" Montana struggled two feet behind him, desperately squirming to get his leg unstuck from the rocks. The mantis, now at arms length focused in on the lagging clone with its large, compound eyes. Frantic, the clone continued to pulling at his leg. The mantis hissed, and backfired its appendage into his leg. The stab left him at a whimpering state, as the insect prepared for the final blow. James took the next rock he could find and hit the monster square in its jaw. THUD. The sound of the impact left the Mantis in a confused state long enough for him to help pull Montana out of the the space.

"Are you ok?!" Montana lost all of his collectedness and sobbed into James's jacket. "Can you walk?" He looked up, his eyes caught amidst pools of grey streaks. He nodded. He understood that they had to hurry, because the Mantis was beginning to rise again. And it did not look happy. James supported up Montana's waist and assisted with walking each step while still clutching his flashlight. The pair awkwardly kept the pace of steps. "I can see it! That's the exit!" He stared back at Montana. "I need to go back. We need that hair. You go on ahead. I'll meet you outside." Montana knew it was no use trying to argue as James ran off in the direction of the the Mantis. After all, he was a Dipper. He kept limping as his only hope for survival was to escape. At last, he felt the Summer breeze back on his back. He was outside again.

"AHHHHHHHAHHGHHHHHHHH"

From the cave the unmistakable hollering of the clone became ever so louder until the boy was in full sights with the manitis hot on his heels. Its hissing and screeching meshed with his horrified sounds. His face was cut up slightly, and his fist held a clump of blonde hair. "RUN!" Montana began moving in the direction they came from. But the insect had other plans. It crawled from the cave and leaped out blocking their path. "THTHIS WAY!" Montana pointed to a patch of trees in the other direction. James assisted him once more as they stumbled through the forest. But the bug would not yield. Skittering of legs busting through branches, the mantis was unavoidable. Montana stopped short. "It'sssa dddead end."

The dead end that he described was an ever moving barrier of white foam and water separating the two from safety- it was a stream. James looked back at the monstrous insect. "We'll have to cross it! We have no other choice!" Montana stared in horror at the rocks bridging both lands. "GO!" He went first, steading his limp and his leg to the sharp angles of each rock. James watched in baited breath as his companion got across safely to the other side. James began to cross. With every step he took he felt his shoes slowly melting from the spray of water.

As soon as he got halfway across, the Mantis threw itself at him. Instinctively, he dodged, barely missing the bug's strike. The Mantis fell headfirst into the water. The monstrous being struggled to stay afloat and was swept up by the current. Although James had managed to avoid the Morningside Mantis, his footing slipped.

"JAMES!" The clone automatically thrusted his arm out into the water to repel the fall. Within seconds, his arm was chewed and absorbed by the flow of the stream. His voice belted out an uproar of sound, as he watched helplessly as the limb disintegrated into nothingness, as the cool feeling of pain spiked through his left shoulder, the only part that remained. He cried for the loss that he suffered and the fact that the hair in his possession- hair he so fought for, was lost to the water also. Montana threw his head up towards the sky.

"Th..there's a st.sstorm cccoming," he said softly. "It-It's best wwwe head b..bback tto the cccavern. Th.the tree is tttoo far, aaand we wwwon't mmake it inntime.." James got up to stand, and cringed some. "No! Nno, it's fffine, I'm ffine, j..j.just mmeet me on ttththe other ssside, ok?" James tried to pull off a convincing smile. "O-okay. But be careful. Those rocks can be slippery."

The two crossed the stream and headed for the cavern.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. OH OH GRAVITY FALLS! OH IT IS GOOD TO BE BACK!  
> 2\. Where have I been?  
> Well, for the past YEAR (yes its been ~a year since I last posted) I've a) been mainly working on science stuff, as most of you are well aware, I do a TON of research and didn't have the time to work on my fic and b) I wanted to see more interactions w/ Dipper and or 3 and 4, since I wrote this last before Wierdmagedon (right after the release of Dungeons, Dungeons, and More Dungeons) so I didn't know how the cannonverse would affect the story- I might have actually been the first person to write about this ship! Dang!  
> 3\. I shortened this chapter down a little so you'll get to see more interactions with the clones and their environments in the following chapter  
> 4\. aw geezeee I used a lotta refs again for basically everything
> 
> BACK TO THE STORY AHEM:  
> 5: Although Mantids don't have "hair" hair, the fancy word for insect hair is Setae!  
> 6:Previously I wanted to create some kind of eldrich abomination for this chapter, but I instead decided it would be kinda nice to add some Alex Hirsh aspects to the creature-something that wasn't too serious, but could still be feared. We have fun here  
> 7\. Props to anyone who noticed that Beetlejuice ref....Gold star  
> 8\. Because of their components, the clones cry toner ink! It kinda streaks through like those pesky streak lines ya get when the printer hasn't been cleaned properly- https://www.easyink.co.nz/support/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/before.jpg  
> 9\. While surfing the 'net I found the exact image of what the Mantis looked like in my head http://img13.deviantart.net/0fb8/i/2012/271/d/3/praying_mantis_with_blonde_hair_by_pretzelrizzo-d5g7a4u.jpg  
> 10\. Her name's Pamela arch enemy of Darlene and I love her  
> 11\. When someone is injured at the leg, support their waist and back area and throw their arm across your shoulder to assist in walking. You thought that this was supposed to be a dumb fanfic and not a slightly medically accurate survival guide?? HA! YOU THOUGHT WRONG.  
> 12\. The bug that James caught is a common The Oregon Stag Beetle (Platycerus oregonensis)! It lives in dead wood!
> 
> Thanks to all of you who read this, if anyone out there still reads my crap. It's ok if noone reads this, I just want to make stuff and have fun with it. I'll try to keep on writing and updating if my research doesn't get too much in the way.

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. I really liked the "endless pockets" trope made with Dipper Pines, so I used it. ha.  
> 2\. I tried my best to make this geologically, and canonically accurate to both the show and the setting, along with Dipper's gestures and phrases.  
> 3\. These boys are gonna be dirtier than the original Dip Dop, as they can't bathe. Enjoy your smelly children.  
> 4\. SO MUCH LOGIC AND THOUGHT PROCESS WENT INTO MAKING THE CLONES OW MY HEAD IS KILLING ME  
> 5\. ow.  
> 6\. creating entire dialogs (and story) with the same person talking to himself is hard.  
> 7\. Updates soon. Expect anything, guys.


End file.
